Etsy Statistics: March 2013 Weather Report

The planet might be taking its sweet time to thaw for spring, but here on Etsy, everything was blooming.

The stats:

$101.7 million of goods (after refunds and cancellations) were sold by our community in March, 9.7% higher than February’s $92.7 million

That represents 5,124,968* items sold for the month, 8.7% higher than February

2,932,874 new items were listed in March, 9.8% higher than February’s 2,671,146

1,036,352 new members joined the Etsy community, 1.1% higher than February’s 1,025,124

1.57 billion page views were recorded on the site

The $101.7 million of goods sold (after refunds and cancellations) represents a 62% increase from March 2012’s total. At the same time, items sold were up 69.2%. Thanks to everyone who contributed to the Etsy community in March 2013!

Curious about how other months compare? Check out our past Weather Reports for more statistics.

*Ed. Note: We discovered an error in how this statistic had been calculated, and have since corrected the figures to be more accurate.

This is awesome news. I'm glad to see these numbers on the rise. I think like Jamie said, adding visuals would be an amazing edition. Also, the ability to see the actual numbers from the previous posts!

Interesting. And as far as numbers being up from February, March had 2 more days than February so that would account for some of the increase.
March of 2012 was the worst month that whole year and after the first three months of this year it looks like it may be the same. I guess our kind of vintage doesn't sell as well in March. April is already looking almost as good as March and it's only about half over. :-)

Super news!! My sales have been steadily increasing ever since October 2012, each month doing better than the last. Thanks Etsy for giving me a place to sell my creations and earn the money our family needs.
Good luck to everyone on a super April and rest of 2013!

I know my personal stats for sales and views have been declining the last few months and so far April is the worst month I've had for sales in several years.
It's nice for etsy that etsy is growing by millions of new members each month, but I can't help thinking that all those new shops mean more competition for me!

I only started a few months ago, but March was definitely the better month for me... hope this tendency will continue.
But it would be great to know how many buyers and how many sellers are added monthly instead of one round figure including both.

would also like to know how many of these new members are shops and how many without. And yes, stats don't really say much. For instance, I used to get excited when someone liked something in my shop, but I have at least several people a week "favorite" multiple items in my shop and others, but then I check their profiles and see a lot of them have no feedback and never buy... so ratio of views and favorites to sales mean nothing.

I love Etsy but am also really scratching my head about what's going on here. I've been on the site since it first opened, one of Etsy's oldest members, but over the last year have really felt my sales suffer and I just can't make sense of it. Is Etsy's per shop traffic declining overall? The weather report site-wide always seems to be increasingly positive while established shops like my own are feeling the weight of some kind of change.

I was surprised to find (with the help of my mathematically gifted husband) that while items sold had increased almost 50% the page views had only increased 16%. I had been suspicious that all the changes being made caused shoppers to wander around the site fruitlessly searching for what they wanted. I am happy to see that is not the case.

The general statistics are impressive, but is there a way of drilling down for further information? I can think of several things I would like to know - What categories sold the most? What subcategories within those sold the most? How many shops sold items vs. shops that did not? What sale ranges occurred (i.e. <$50, $51-$100, $101-$500, etc.) With the influx of new members (I am one) and an overall increase in dollars and sales, what is the average sale per member? (If new member growth exceeds the average per member revenue, this is not a positive trend). Of views and favorites and followers, what is the breakout of buyers vs. members? What is the average $ generated per favorite, follower, admirer, etc. Crystals comment yields another challenge. Statistically, it would appear that overall items sold occur with those having the highest rankings - This would be consistent with Google statistics citing that most people do not go beyond two pages in selecting a purchase. That said, with the millions of members, there are only a limited number of spaces for top billing no matter how good and conscientious a seller may be about maximizing their web positioning. I am not criticizing Etsy, as I am certain they have worked hard to get this up and running, but as a seller (albeit new) I want to be able to evaluate the venues I use to maximize my sales. A better breakout of statistical trends would help me do this.

I have read all of the threads. As a person who has been in business outside this arena, I would say the comments from Ben are the most valuable (although his frustration tends to taint an excellent analysis). Having been through the various quality improvement trainings including 6 sigma, I would stress that expanded statistics and drilled down facts do not have to be a threat. Identifying problems and weaknesses as well as strengths allows for the opportunity to make intelligent and informed modifications. I do not expect perfection from the Etsy model, in fact, given the complexity of managing a rapidly expanding concept suggests the administration has done a respectable job. In any venture like Etsy there will be those who increase their business, those that remain stable, those that lose business and those who never get off the ground. Individual comments in making decisions can lead to what questions to ask, but it is only in looking at large scale trends and indicators that a true picture is gained. Without a more informative and meaningful statistical basis that is shared with the members, there is a real danger Etsy will collapse under its own weight. I believe a solid approach on Etsy's part would be to seek member input on the kinds of statistical data and research that would provide a clearer picture of the overall model. From comments I have read here and in other forums, it suggests there are some really sharp people willing to make positive contributions in improving the Etsy member experience.

In addition to selling my hand painted silk scarves on Etsy, I also have a small retail store in New York's Hudson Valley where I sell a variety of accessories and gifts. I have had a brick & mortar retail business for over 8 years and am really glad to have found a place like Etsy to sell my work on line. That being said, I don't think there are too many people selling on Etsy who will say they can't keep up with the demand for their work or products. The buyers out there are constantly changing and the more choices they have, the harder it seems for us.
I think the answer for Etsy is more advertising of Etsy itself - just as Ebay is doing. For goodness sake, Ebay is advertising on national cable TV and all over. They have a catchy slogan, "if it's on your mind, it's on Ebay" or something like that.
Etsy needs to market itself all over the map. Get those marketing geniuses to do radio, TV, internet advertising. For a company this big that is growing by leaps and bounds, it's amazing how many people have never heard of Etsy. Meanwhile, everyone on the planet knows what Ebay is. Etsy is always telling us how to market our work and our brand. They need to take their own advice and market ETSY.

I agree with Patty-I would like to see Etsy advertise more. In fact, I believe the support, community, and policies are MUCH more buyer and seller friendly than Ebay. I also believe the products are better!